Sports

Young CPA by day, turns motorcycle racer on weekends

EVERETT, Wash. -- Exciting action, along the lines of the X Games, is invading Everett's Comcast Arena. It takes three days to transform the arena for this event, setting up a dirt track that looks like the great outdoors.

This competition attracts racers from across the country but also includes local talent, including 24-year-old Allyson Johnson, from Everett.

Taking a break from practice runs on the track, Allyson explained part of her attraction to sport, dominated by men: "You know, I sit at a desk all day long. I think this is kind of my outlet. It's the way I seek thrill on the weekends and stuff."

Her event is Endurocross -- a serious motorcycle competition where riders race over treacherous obstacles to be the first to cross the finish line.

"You'll see people get stuck and crashing and people's bikes overheat," Johnson said. "And then there are those who make it look easy and just go flying over everything. It's just crazy to watch."

This kind of riding goes on throughout our region, but here, it's a competitive, indoor spectator sport.

"The crashes, the flips and you know it's chaos," said Lance Bryson, marketing director for Geico Endurocross.

Bryson, who takes this show across the country, said it's really for the whole family.

There's so much for fans to watch and riders to experience. They're jumping extra-large tires, plowing through a water hazard and navigating a wood pile, which Lance said is the hardest part of the course.

Allyson however, found another section of the track more challenging.

"They're really big boulders and you have to turn while you're going through them," Allyson said. "It's such a thrill and especially when there's a whole stadium of people watching you -- it's so exciting."

No wonder this 24-year-old said she's leave her downtown Seattle CPA job in a heartbeat, if she could earn her living on the track.

You can watch Allyson and the other racers for free all day Saturday at Everett's Comcast Arena. Qualifying heats run roughly 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Then the big show that you need a ticket for starts at 7:30 p.m..